We many times suffer from a blocked nose throughout the year. During winter it is caused by a cold or flu, and in the summertime, it’s typically evolved by pollen allergies or environmental irritants. The symptom is caused by inflamed blood vessels in the sinus, your breathing gets heavy, your nose feels clogged, you sound nasal, and the lack of oxygen can even carry some headache with it. There are useful medication available for each kind of the symptoms, however, if you prefer gentle, natural therapeutic ways, try these easy home remedies, that will open up your nose and the air for you, too.
17. Homemade Steam Bath
You can prepare your steam bath the classic way, using a bowl of hot water and placing your face over it, covering your head with a towel. Watch out that the steam shouldn’t be too hot otherwise it will scald your face and even your throat. Or, if you have such a modern shower, you can enjoy your steam bath even in there. Any option you choose, steam will loosen up mucus and relieves sinus pressure. To intensify its benefits, you can use fresh ginger or essential oils to your session.
16. Saline Nasal Sprays
Saline (saltwater) nasal sprays are great if you don’t want to use any chemicals or medicines, but still needs help with easing your breathing. The saline spray has a number of great benefits. It contributes to restoring moisture, it cleanses the nasal passages from bacteria, thins out the mucus and relieves inflammation. A further benefit is that you can use it even for babies on a regular basis to give your nose a washout.
15.Essential Oils
If you think of essential oils, probably the first one pops up in your head is eucalyptus oil, being one of the best natural treatment in flu. I’m sure you also know the feeling when you smell in it, and it just blows away the clog from your nose. Mix a few drops into your steam bath, or you can try to put a few drops on your pillowcase at night to ease your breathing, but the most effective way is to use a diffuser that will fill the air with the smell, all day long. You have other oils to choose from, like peppermint or coconut oils.
14.Hot Fluids
This is a real classical originated from thousands of years but works so well, we couldn’t miss from this list. Hot drinks clear the nasal passages, help loosen the sinus, and make it easier to breathe. It can be a simple herb tea with honey and lemon, but if you are not averse to alcohol, add a few drops of whisky or rum into your hot drink before bedtime. Good night sleep is guaranteed!
13.Stay Hydrated
Having at least 2 liters of 8-ounce glasses of water per day is considered as the minimum by health authorities and nutritionists. If you can’t breathe properly through your nose, but only through your mouth, your throat any way will need to get moisturized, to avoid being irritated. There are only 2 things to keep in mind: try to split the 2 liters into small portions, don’t drink it all at once, and instead of ready-made juices and drinks, prefer having pure water, or if it’s too boring, add the juice of a lemon to it.
12.Honey
Honey is a magical food. It has so many health benefits that it is close to be called a superfood, however, if you add it in hot water – over 40 C degree, 104 F – many of the goodies will disappear from it. So make sure not to put it in your tea while it’s still hot. The best you can do is just munch it alone, with a small spoon. It promotes healing of inflamed nasal passages and boosts the immune system at the same time. It also contributes to prevent further infection while repairing the tissue lining of the sinus.
11.Lemon
Lemon is a jolly joker fruit. You can enjoy it all year long, squeezing it into hot or cold drinks, depending on the weather and on your needs. The juice of one lemon not only provides 90% of the recommended daily allowance of vitamin C but also, it fights inflammation and boosts the immune system.
10.Herbal Tea
Here you’ll have a huge palette to choose from. starting from the classical camomille tea, through ginger or sage tea, all the way to the rosehip tea or green tea, herbal teas have all different properties and features that heal, soothe and provide relief for nasal blockage. Make sure you add lemon and honey into your tea to fight congestion, but only after it cooled down a bit.
9.Hot Chicken Soup
Another old-time favorite is hot chicken soup (also called “Jewish penicillin”), typically every mother’s chicken soup cures basically almost all of the different maladies of the family members, may it be a simple cold, or even a hangover. The secret to open the breathing is in its hotness, as it clears the sinus. And the other secret is most probably the love your mom cooked into it.
8.Super Juices
If you don’t feel like eating tons of fruits and vegetables just to get the vitamins and nutrient your body needs, preparing fresh juices can be a great alternative. The great thing about it is that you can use any combination of the fruits or veggies you have at home, the result will be just great. You only have to be aware of adding some apples and/or bananas into the blender as a base, so the smooth, sweet taste is guaranteed. A good combination for nasal congestion is said to a nice mixture of apple, cucumber, celery, fennel, ginger, mint, and some lemon.
7.Garlic
Garlic also has a very long history as being used in traditional medicine; we can find evidence even in ancient documents for it. It is originated from Asia, and in that part of the world, they sill use this veggie as a spice in their everyday cuisine. Garlic is known to have a positive effect on the blood vessels, and thanks to its strong, unique aroma, it also works as an anti-congestion method.
6.Ginger Root
Ginger is a must have goodie at home if you suffer from the flu or an allergy. Its roots contain anti-inflammatory properties, plus it is a natural antihistamine, and decongestant, that all can be at your service to fight bacteria and get well soon. Prepare a ginger shot for yourself, or drink it in a warm drink, adding hot water, honey and lemon to the freshly grated ginger.
5.Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV)
Another wonderful ingredient from ancient times. Apple cider vinegar is known from its diversive health benefits, e.g. from its anti-fungal and anti-viral effects. You can simply take a spoonful of the vinegar for nasal congestion, or colds, once a day. Or, if you want to do even more for your health, try to mix it with one spoonful of pollen, and one spoonful of honey in a glass of water, and drink it on a daily basis.
4.Onion
By the time you read this point of the list, you will have a quite characteristic smell, that’s for sure. Never mind, you can’t get out of the house, if you’re sick. And now, we’re going to enhance it a bit more with onions. This common vegetable has more health benefits than we would have thought of. Onions have antibacterial properties, thanks to their sulfur content, and they compound anti-inflammatory and antihistamine properties.
3.Cayenne Pepper
Cayenne peppers can do wonder with your clogged nose. Adding 2-3 pinches of cayenne pepper to your hot drinks, soups, or juices, will increase your intake of capsaicin, a natural chemical compound found in chili peppers, that is responsible for their characteristic flavor. If nothing else helps, that will drain out your mucus, for sure.
2.Spicy Food
Be an experimenter! Besides chili, you can try wasabi, as well. It will definitely provide short term relief for clogged and stuffy noses, causing mucus to drain out rapidly. Be careful with the dose though! You only need a really small amount to get the complete effect of your nasal issues, as it will result in a runny nose and watery eyes in one second. Even though the effect is conspicuous, don’t try to use it on a regular basis, only if your blocked nose needs a quick and short-lived solution.
1.Healthy Diet
So, here we go again. Whatever we do, we just cannot avoid following a healthy lifestyle. All the above can perfectly fit into a healthy diet, so combine them all and even try to insert your favorite ones into your everyday routine. If you suffer from nasal problems, try to avoid foods that are processed, fried or have high sugar content, as they are known to worsen sinus diseases, and generally, they are just not good for your body.
